[R] load.wave

[Nick Wray]

I have been given a wav file of train locomotive noise - literally something you can play back and hear.  Using the audio package and the load.wave function I have got a 1.5 million element vector which visually at least has some periodicity in certain parts and does not seem to be completely random.  Most elements (99%) are within a range of about -0.14 to +0.14 with occasional outliers.  Beneath is a typical short segment.


This is the head:

sample rate: 16000Hz, mono, 16-bits
[1] -3.051851e-05  6.103516e-05 -6.103702e-05  3.051758e-05  3.051758e-05 -1.220740e-04

Most elements (99%) are within a range of about -0.14 to +0.14 with occasional outliers

This is the same kind of output as is illustrated in the documentation: 
https://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/seewave/vignettes/seewave_IO.pdf

What I am not sure about, and I can't find any clear explanation, is what these elements actually stand for? 
I would have thought that one needed as a minimum both volume and frequency ie a two dimensional vector but as far as I can tell
there is only one single vector.  I'm aware that this question is pushing the envelope of R help but...

Thanks, Nick Wray